Foreign Ministry spokesperson Liu Jianchao told a regular press
conference yesterday that peaceful development is in the interest
of Japan as well as the peace and stability of the region, reacting
to a Japanese ruling party's promotion of a new draft calling for
the possession of military forces.
"Due to historical factors, Asian countries are paying close
attention to Japan's move to revise the constitution," he said.
The Japanese governing Liberal Democratic Party's new draft
constitution, presented on the occasion of the party's 50th
anniversary on Tuesday, calls for the possession of an official
military for the first time since World War II and for the armed
forces to get a more assertive international role.
Liu repeated the Chinese government's opposition to Japanese
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visits to Tokyo's Yasukuni
Shrine which honors 14-Class-A war criminals amongst millions of
other Japanese war dead.
"We do not oppose the Japanese general public's visits to
Yasukuni Shrine," Liu said. "But we firmly oppose visits by
Japanese leaders."
He echoed the comments of Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wang Yi,
who said yesterday that the shrine visits by Japanese leaders were
political obstructions to bilateral ties.
Liu also said the Chinese fishing vessel detained by Japan in
its exclusive economic zone on Monday because the shipmaster failed
to present certificates showing his identification has been
released.
China and Japan have properly handled the case in accordance
with bilateral fishing agreement and common practice, Liu said.
Premier Wen's visits
Liu said Premier Wen
Jiabao will pay official visits to France, Slovakia, the Czech
Republic, Portugal and Malaysia from December 4 to 15.
Wen will also attend the 9th Summit between China and ASEAN, the
9th ASEAN plus China, Japan and South Korea Summit and the 1st East
Asian Summit in Kuala Lumpur.
Wen was invited by French Prime Minister Dominique Galouzeau de
Villepin, Slovakian Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda, Czech Prime
Minister Jiri Paroubek, Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates and
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Liu said.
Liu also said Alexander Grigorievich Lukashenko, president of
Belarus, will visit China from December 4 to 7 as a guest of
President Hu
Jintao.
Lesotho's Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili will also visit from
November 30 to December 6 at Wen's invitation.
(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily November 25, 2005)